The Acacia Strain, Within The Ruins, Fit for an Autopsy, American Me, Assyria – September 2, 2013 – Portland, Oregon – Hawthorne Theater

By admin723834|2018-07-04T20:38:36+00:00September 2nd, 2013|Show Reviews|Comments Off on The Acacia Strain, Within The Ruins, Fit for an Autopsy, American Me, Assyria – September 2, 2013 – Portland, Oregon – Hawthorne Theater

Most of the crowd heading in tonight was young. It wasn’t a sold out show, but that may have been because of the Labor Day weekend and with everyone getting ready for school. So to kick off the show was Assyria. This local 5 piece band set the tone for the evening and that tone was heavy and deep. They started off their set with their new single “Godless” which with the death metal sound got the crowd moving. My only real critique would be the guys needed to move around on stage more, look like they are having the time of their life. The crowd will feed off that. Next up was American Me, who are on Rise records with Acacia Strain. This local band could have co-headlined the show! The crowd was singing along to the songs and the pit looked like a mixture of pop rocks and coke, you had no idea what was going to happen next. The crowd seemed to thoroughly enjoy their new song “Passing Ships” although every song kicked major ass. They showed some hometown pride and looked genuinely excited to be playing. Following American Me was the New Jersey based band Fit for an Autopsy. This death metal band was not afraid to showcase their disgust with the world today. Fit for an Autopsy were also promoting their newly released album “Hellbound” which I suggest you pick up! The music tonight was fast and all over the place. Nate (singer) mentioned how the bassist was the newest addition which I think gave the music a more rounded, complete sound. There was a bit too much going on for me to keep up with, but the overall set was great. Their finale seemed to transform the pit into a ninja party with legs flying everywhere! Keeping the pace next was the deathcore/metalcore band from Massachusetts, Within the Ruins. I thought these guys killed it! Seemed like this band not only kept up with the deathcore styling of today but also threw in some old school flare with the guitar solos. Their song “The Charm” got the circle pit started and from then on, the crowd didn’t stop. The drummer looked like he could have been the brother of our very own 55 DIMES. Within the Ruins brought the energy up and you could feel the anticipation in the room waiting for he headliner after their set. The music playing before Acacia Strain took the stage was a weird mixture of today’s pop and rap music. When Acacia Strain took the stage, the crowd went crazy. I like the vocal style that Vincent brings, definitely a different sound but sounds great with the heavy-ness of music. Nate from Fit for an Autopsy even came out to sing on one of the songs. The Acacia Strain gave some props to Portland’s very own late Rock and Roll Pizza and the Satyricon which was awesome. We even learned that Vincent does not like hippies and that he said he brought some plastic bags to leave out on the streets of Portland because of the plastic bag ban. During one of my favorite songs, “Hills have Eyes”, crowd members were stage diving but because of the open pit on the floor, these guys were pretty much just jumping feet first from the stage to the pit. The Acacia Strain was an amazing show, I would recommend anyone to check them out next time they are in town, especially if you missed this show. “We are human and we are scum. Enjoy this because this is all we have.”